Exostosis – What It Is and How to Fix It

If you brush and floss your teeth on a regular basis, each time you’re finished, you may be inclined to take a look in the mirror to check out your teeth and see how they look. If you’ve ever observed your mouth and saw something unexpected, you’ve probably had a lot of questions, anxiety, and worry running through your mind.

When inspecting your mouth, have you ever observed something that appears to be a bony growth located at the jaw line or on your gums? While they may look scary or even gross; these growths, known as tori or “exostoses” can occur in any patient.

What Are Exostoses?

Exostoses are symptomatic boney outgrowths that grow when there is an excessive amount of stress and tension placed on the teeth’s underlying structures. Tori are widely seen in patients who clench their teeth – which is known to cause higher levels of stress – but the condition has also been found in patients who do not suffer from TMJ symptoms.

A very common cause of exostoses is a bad bite, also known as malocclusion. Malocclusion occurs when the teeth do not align properly. When the teeth are not aligned, the jaw joint experiences higher levels of stress and tension as the jaw joint is put into a torque position that then encourage the growth of tori. At the same time, malocclusion can also cause pain and discomfort.

Whether the excess strain and tension placed on the teeth and jaw joints is caused by teeth clenching, malocclusion, or some other underlying problem, the body’s natural defense is to produce extra bone material to support the teeth. When these bone materials grow, they often become very visible.

Getting Rid of Tori

Generally, the treatment of Tori involves removing the boney growths from the mouth through surgery. While surgery is successful for some; for other patients, tori may return if the underlying cause of the problem isn’t corrected with surgical extraction. For the treatment of tori to be permanent, it’s important that the root cause of the problem be diagnosed and treated accordingly. Tori will only go away when the cause of the excess pressure and tension is gone.

If you suffer from exostoses, call Drs. Ken & Marnie Collins’ office today to determine the treatment method that is right for you. Drs. Ken & Marnie Collins will properly examine you to decide which treatment method is most suitable for you. To get started, simply call or email our office today.